You Never Walk Alone
by nitaya
Summary: Ayane and Ayko, 2 Konoha kunoichi, spend their days training and going on missions. Collaboration fanfic with AykoMyoka.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The carefree days are over.

_Ayko's POV._

Konoha, a peaceful village located in the Fire country inhabited by both ninja as civilians. Amongst the Konoha crowd a young kunoichi walked by potential herb-shops, but none quiet fit her teammate Doitei's description. The black haired teen turned to her right side eyeing the snow haired boy that dragged her in to all this.

"Well? I don't see it anywhere around here, do you?" the girl sneered at her teammate, letting out an annoyed sigh. "Ay-chan, I'm sure it's a little further." Doitei, her teammate stated with a sweat drop. Continuing in a hushed voice: "If I remember correctly..."

The girl's name was Ayko Myoka, Heiress of the Myoka-clan. Her family descended from a long line of powerful Konoha shinobi. It's not her name that made her so confident, though; Ayko had always been full of pride and determination. Her friend Doitei Wasuki, while not from a clan, was too timid for his own good. Which often ended with Ayko standing up for him in most matters or at the least help him out. Today had been one of those matters.

"Hmm… Why don't we check out that shop on the far end of the street, it seems popular." Ayko noted her friend, grabbing his collar to make him tag along. Doitei motioned her to slow down.

"Geesh Ay-chan, what's with the hurry? Are you meeting up with someone later today?" he asked her with a raised eyebrow. Ayko's cheeks flushed at that, exactly what Doitei had hoped for. She couldn't keep secrets from her own team, so it was obvious that he had an idea of what was going on.

"And so what if I am? It's not like you're joining, right?" the Myoka Heiress glared at her timid teammate, making him regret his former action. She straightened her face out and focused on the job at hand; the herb store. Only Doitei saw through her changing of subjects and left one word drifting in the air as he suddenly spoke.

"Hey, isn't that Naruto's team?" his innocent voice squeaked observing her every body language. A chill ran down the kunoichi's spine as she took in every word Doitei said. She turned around completely, only to figure out she was being fooled. She ignored Doitei's stifled laughter while she headed for the store's direction. "I'll remember this, Doitei!" Ayko hissed from clenched teeth.

"Sure, you will!" Doitei cheerfully grinned behind her. "And you were always saying that I should be less shy, weren't you?" That earned him a growl this time; the Naruto-subject was a delicate matter for the black haired teen and he more than once had teased her with it. Ayko and the blond jinchuuriki had a very weird and complicated relation; they hardly talked, but for some reason they had an invisible understanding. Not everyone knew about this, only Ayko's best friends; Doitei, Kyo Ryotso and Hinata Hyuuga.

"Let's just get this over with so I can get back home!" she complained as she pushed the door from the shop open.

What they find inside was overwhelming; it's like they walked right into a paradise of herbs and other groceries. Doitei's eyes were brimming with joyful tears at the sight of the generously filled store. Ayko on the other hand, ran through all the shopping racks with the most bored look on her face ever; shopping wasn't her thing to begin with, but groceries took it to another level of boredom. Why Doitei was so fascinated by herbs was an absolute mystery to her. Except maybe, because he's a medical nin and he makes his own ointments, but even his interests for herbs were more than just curiosity. She was so busy with nagging in her mind that she almost bumped into the girl right in front of her. "Hi there, may I be of any help?" her voice sounded cheerful and light. It wasn't until then that Ayko looked up into her grey eyes and noticed her light tinted green hair. Almost like she stared into the eyes of a child of nature; she became intrigued with her.

"Uhm... eto... He's the one you should talk to; I'm just here for mental support." the Myoka Heiress pointed to a white haired blob between the shopping racks. "All right, I will." the girl from the shop winked. "But don't I know you from somewhere?" Ayko gave her a quick scan realizing this girl before her was quiet familiar, but why? "I'm not sure, what's your name? I'm Ayko Myoka, by the way." Ayko flashed the girl a small smile. "I'm Ayane Morinaka." was all she said, a wide grin present.

_Ayane's POV._

"Sis!" someone yelled. Ayane turned around and saw two little guys coming up to her. Her 8-year-old twin brothers, Wakaki and Wakaba. "Yes?" she asked them, while putting some shuriken back into her holster. "Mom needs help at the store. She asked if you can help her out." one of them replied. "We'll take your place here." the other one said with a wide grin on his face. "No one is taking my place and especially not you two." Ayane told them resolutely and looked at her team mates and sensei. "Is it okay if I go?" she asked. "No! Don't go. I need you to help me with this technique." the guy with light brown hair whined. "Ah, come on Isamu. I'll help you. It's not that hard." the black haired guy replied while patting the Isamu's shoulder.

"Is it really okay, sensei?" Ayane asked when looking at the tall man sighing while seeing how the two guys started arguing. "Of course it is. We'll handle it without you. Seems like Arashi still has enough energy left to help out Isamu." Naoto said before telling Arashi to calm down a bit. "Okay then. Bye guys. Good luck and I'll see you tomorrow." she said while trying not to laugh, witnessing a whining Isamu and a hyped Arashi. As they said goodbye, Ayane and her brothers took off towards the store.

When she arrived at the store, she realized immediately why her mom asked for her. The store was full with costumers. It always has, since it was the main grocery store in the village, but today it was exceptionally crowded. Her mom returned from the Benisu Islands yesterday with a load of medical herbs, which were requested by many medical nin in the past weeks. Of course the news spread quickly and here they were.

Before she could even search for her mom, she heard a voice behind her. "Ayane. Thankfully you got her. The place is crowded. I hope Naoto didn't mind?" her mom asked as she turned around. "No, it's no problem at all. And seems like you need my help a lot more than they do." Ayane assured her when looking around in the store. "I'll go grab an apron, seems like some of them need some help."

Ayane walked into the store's back room to grab an apron and walked into the store. As she looked around the store to see if someone needed help, a girl almost bumped into her. "Hi there. May I be of any help?" she asked the girl. "Uhm... eto... He's the one you should talk to, I'm just here for mental support." the girl replied, pointing at a guy who was searching for something in the racks. "All right, I will." Ayane winked. Looks like he really needed help. He was searching the racks like crazy.

As she wanted to walk up to the guy, she looked at the girl once more. "But don't I know you from somewhere?" she asked. She was certain they had met before, but she couldn't remember a name or an occasion. "I'm not sure, what's your name? I'm Ayko Myoka, by the way." the girl replied with a small smile. She obviously recognized Ayane too, which was made clear by the confused look on her face. "I'm Ayane Morinaka" Ayane said, hoping this would help them figure out where and how they've met before.

When no reaction was given by neither of them, Ayane walked up to the guy. "Hi there, can I help you?" she asked while tapping his shoulder. The guy immediately turned around and looked at her with quite a scared look. "You scared me. But yes you can." he replied. "I'm looking for some red newts? I heard one of the grocery stores got a huge load of them shipped in yesterday, but I can't find them." he continued. "You're at the right address. Just follow me." Ayane said while walking towards the counter. As Ayko and her friend got to her, she took a small terrarium out of the pantry and placed it on the counter. The guy nearly squeaked out of excitement as he saw the red salamanders. "How many do you need?" Ayane asked while trying not to laugh. Ayko looked at her friend being quite annoyed by his behavior and rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Doitei? We searched every grocery store in town for these… things?! Can't you just catch them yourself?" she asked him. "These newts are one of the most important components for medication. And no, I can't." Doitei replied to Ayko without losing sight of the newts. "And can I have four please?" he said when looking up to Ayane.

As Ayko and Doitei walked out of the store, Ayane watched them leave and noticed the lotus flower on the back of Ayko's shirt. And then it hit her. She and Ayko fought each other during the chuunin exams a few years ago.


	2. Chapter 2-1

Chapter 2: The clan's pride at stake - Morinaka vs. Myoka.

_Two years earlier, chuunin-exams final rounds, Konoha._

_Ayko's POV._

There was a strange aura in the air as the crammed fighting arena exploded with shouts and murmurs coming from the crowd. Only 15 minutes away from the first battle; the one battle that had many people glued to their seats. Ayane Morinaka vs. Ayko Myoka. While some latecomers hurried to find some seats, a few rows higher Mazuiko Myoka, Kami Myoka and Kaito Noraishi were enjoying the cheers from the bustling spectators. Mazuiko, her calm usual self, took in a shaky breath while she searched for her daughter between the participants of the Chuunin-exam. She found her showing of a confident grin as she swept her hair back that was held in a ponytail.

"I'm not comfortable with the situation, Kaito. This could end up wrong.." Mazuiko spoke up with concern tainting her voice. Said Kaito, or also known as her husband, coughed before he gave her his reply. "Be a little confident in our Hime, she's bound to have a plan for this." Kaito smiled reassuringly as he looked at his older son, Kami. Kami, who had been staring in front of him being bored, nodded vaguely aware of what his parents were arguing about. He had gained his Jounin title two years back and didn't feel like getting into this mess his little sister was going to bring upon them.

"The Morinaka Heiress is a genjutsu-user! How can you go so lightly about this?" Mazuiko panicked, her frown turning her beautiful face into a scary sight. "Because Torii-sensei assured me he'd do something to help her counter that. Have faith in our daughter." the sandy blond man grinned while waving back at his 14 year old daughter. "And since when did you approve of Torii's training methods?" Kami raised an eyebrow emphasizing his irony. Kaito sweatdropped at this while receiving a scowl from Mazuiko.

"You're forgetting that potential suitors are here to sample her strength, if she loses then they will surely lose their interest." Mazuiko muttered irritated by Kaito's carefree way of thinking. "I know that! But my baby girl isn't going to marry anyone unless he's proven his worth. I'll work those potential suitors to the bone!" an evil smile spread across Kaito's face as he imagined himself torturing the poor souls. Their little argument carried on even when the participants of the Chuunin-exams were allowed to speak to their teams. Ayko Myoka, the girl who had her ponytail tied back, turned around to meet up with her teammates. Kyo Ryotso, who possessed straight black hair and green eyes, walked up to Ayko giving her a shoulder pat.

"I'm sure you'll do fine." he winked, showing her a thumps up. Behind him Doitei and their sensei Torii Miwaru showed up. Doitei smiled brightly as he hugged her briefly.  
"Worry more about yourselves." Ayko grinned returning their encouraging gestures. "You guys are next after this match, aren't you?" Torii had a deadpanned look after he heard this. His facial expression was rich with irritation as well as disappointment.

"Still talking tall, huh? Wait until you get caught in her genjutsu, you'll be totally defenseless. And the worst part of it is that it could've been avoided if you would've just showed up for training." Torii lectured her while pointing out her weak spots. Ayko simply ignored his complaints and turned to Kyo.

"I'll be fine if I just focus enough energy on the spot, no?" she informed, showing Torii her back. "Hey! I wasn't finished yet!" Torii interrupted their talk. "You won't win this match if you keep acting that you always know better." "In essence, yes, but still… Be careful, Ayko, genjutsu is not countered easily. Especially if the user is skilled and we have no idea what her level is like. Whatever you do, don't act too rash." Kyo advised her, making sure she got his warning. Doitei joined in on their conversation as he gave them both a broad smile.

"If you're confident enough in yourself, this will be a piece of cake. I know you can do this, Ay-chan." he encouraged her. Ayko responded with a soft smile. "Thanks, you guys. I'll win this one for the team." she smirked, then while addressing Torii she stuck out her tongue. "What do I get if I win?" Their sensei's face showed even more annoyance now, but he gave her a creepy smile this time. "How about less boasting and more training. You won't become a fine shinobi by doing nothing, you know." yes, his counter-attack consisted of more lecturing.

_Ayane's POV._

The chuunin exams. A huge event which gets the attention of all shinobi worldwide. A series of fights to determine which genin are proficient enough to become chuunin. Everybody from friends to family, from sensei's to Kage and even feudal lords are among the spectators for the final round. In this round the finalists have to fight each other without barely any rules, until one of them remains undefeated. Yet, if certain finalists prove being worthy of the title of chuunin – even when facing defeat in their fight – they can still be promoted if the council thinks they have the necessary qualifications of a chuunin.

This being a given, it's needless to say that these exams could change someone's and a village's future. Ayane also knew this, and it wasn't helping to calm her down when the finals were about to start. She got through the previous rounds, but this one wasn't going to be easy. Especially not when her fight has to kick-off the final round. She tried to be prepared for everything and trained almost non-stop to perfect her jutsu, but right now she only felt insecure and scared. Luckily the candidates were allowed some time with their team mates and sensei to give them a last pep talk.

Ayane looked around in the arena, only to see it crowed with people anxious to see the fight between her and Ayko Myoka. The more she looked around, the more stressed out she got. She heard a lot about the Myoka-girl. Being the heiress of the Myoka clan - which meant as much as being part of a clan with secret techniques and extremely powerful shinobi – made her an opponent to fear in battle. And now Ayane had to fight her. In front of family, friends, sensei's and even the Hokage.

"You'll be okay." Naoto assured her. Ayane turned around and looked at her team mates and sensei. She sure needed a pep talk. "No, I won't. She's a Myoka. There's no way I'll be able to defeat her." she said while shaking her head. "And you're Morinaka. If she gets trapped in your genjutsu, she's done for. There's no way she could defeat you." Arashi told her. "My genjutsu level isn't good enough to fight her. I heard she's quite a genius and has very powerful techniques. I won't win. And there's no way I'll walk back out of that arena on my own. She's going to crush me." Ayane outed her concern to them.

"I'm the one who's always doubting himself and expecting the worst to happen, not you. You'll be okay. Just try your best." Isamu told her. "There's also a chance you get promoted, even when losing. But since that's not going to happen, that's nothing to worry about." he continued his pep talk. "I just don't want to disappoint anyone." she replied. "You won't. We all know you'll try your best and that's all you can do." her sensei assured her some more. "You're an Earth Chakra user, so is she. But you're part of Konoha's Morinaka clan. There's no one who could outdo your Earth Release techniques. And your Earth Dust technique is impossible to release if you're not high-leved in genjutsu."

"And she may be a Fire Release user, but since you're used to fight me, you'll be fine. If you're able to defeat me with my aggressive and unpredictable way of fighting, you're able to defeat anyone." Arashi added to the pep talk.

Ayane sighed once more and looked at all three of them. "Thanks guys." she smiled faintly and felt a bit a relieved. But that moment didn't last long as suddenly the speakers announced the first match and the arena exploded in excitement.

_Ayko's POV._

Ayko looked up as her and her opponents names were called over from the speakers. So it was finally time. She grinned excitedly while she moved to the middle of the arena scanning the green haired Kunoichi that made her way over to the center as well. So this had to be the Morinaka Heiress she'd been warned about, coming from a clan specialized in genjutsu. Now that they finally came face to face Ayko had to admit she was a little scared of the outcome of her match. The confidence she builded up during the first 2 parts of the exams seemed to be seeping out of her body the longer she held eye contact with the girl in front of her. She was aware of her own strength, but right now that thought didn't seem to calm her down. Her nerves were raging both in excitement as well as fear; fear of a crushing defeat if she lost control over this match. The proctor of the final rounds gave both girls a glance as he spoke firmly.

"Are both contestants ready? On your marks. 3... 2... 1... GO!" the final word rang in Ayko's ears as she jumped back out of habit, thinking of what move she could start with. Then she noticed that Ayane came at her with a kunai and she instantly pulled out Kyuushuu, her trusted katana, to repel the impact. Just in time too, since the kunai missed her cheek by an inch. She immediately performed a counterattack by slashing her katana at her opponent. Ayane managed to dodge her katana while bending backwards, which almost caused her to fall back but didn't. The crowd gasped as both Heiresses were still on their feet and measuring each other's strength, which they had only slightly scratched the surface of.

Ayko huffed as she eyed Ayane who appeared to be breathless as well, their speed was about the same, but she had her genjutsu advantage. The black haired teen had no idea what her opponents jutsu's were about, neither did she know what level of shinobi she was dealing with. Now that she thought about it, the only thing she knew for sure was that she shouldn't get caught in Ayane's genjutsu. She also just now experienced that their reaction time was about similar, but that didn't seem to work in either's favor. Plus, the Myoka Heiress hadn't revealed all of her jutsu's yet, which was an advantage to consider.

"Think Ayko, think! Maybe I could surprise her with a Tsuchibunshin, that way I won't need to use too much chakra and hopefully startle her enough to land a vast hit on her. That could work." Ayko sighed, preparing herself for her next move.

_Ayane's POV._

Ayane walked towards the center of the arena and felt how she got nervous again, when seeing her opponent. Ayko Myoka looked at her with a grin and Ayane instantly panicked. All the trainings and pep talks have been meaningless, because at that moment Ayane knew she wasn't going to win.

The exam proctor looked at them and spoke the words Ayane didn't want to hear. "Are both contestants ready? On your marks. 3... 2... 1... GO!" he said firmly and Ayane's attitude instantly changed from fear and hesitation into excitement and determination. The only thing going through her mind was the fact that her team, family and friends were watching her fighting a highly skilled opponent in the final round of the exams.

As Ayane pulled out a kunai and attacked Ayko, the Myoka pulled out a katana and repelled the attack. She immediately tried a counterattack, but Ayane dodged it just in time. The entire arena was watching them with excitement and waited for their next move as they continued to attack each other. Ayane tried to regain her breath for a moment, as she analyzed Ayko. She noticed the Myoka was out of breath too, which made her realize their level was quite the same. For now.

The only option she had was to wait and see what Ayko's next move would be. And luckily she didn't have to wait long.


	3. Chapter 2-2

Chapter 2: The clan's pride at stake - Morinaka vs. Myoka.

_Ayane's POV._

Ayko immediately created an Earth clone and came at her with full speed. Even thought their previous attacks had been exhausting, it seemed the Myoka still had enough stamina left. When suddenly Ayko formed signs and used Fire Needles, Ayane lost her focus on the real Myoka and couldn't avoid getting hit by the katana. She felt how the cold and sharp steel carved into her leg and tried to ignore the pain. The entire arena gasped and looked at the two kunoichi's.

The Myoka didn't waste a moment to attack her a second time, but this time Ayane was able to avoid another hit and managed to throw her kunai to take care of the clone. Ayko was obviously surprised by this action, and so was Ayane. But this gave her some time to think of a good counter attack. Judging the previous attack, she knew Ayko wasn't a skilled Earth Release user, which made her a bit more confident. She would only have to get her trapped in her genjutsu and the fight would be over.

But the Myoka wasn't as hesitant after getting hit as Ayane hoped for, and formed the signs for her next attack. Ayane didn't have much time to think, since in a flash a bunch of flames came her way, sharp like needles and coming at her with a incredible speed. Realizing she couldn't avoid getting hit without using a jutsu, she used the Earth and Stone Dragon. While using the dragon to shield her from the flames, she created an Earth clone and dispelled the dragon to create a giant cloud of dust.

By the time the Myoka realized what was happening, Ayane took out some shuriken and used the dust to attack her from out of nowhere, with help of the clone she made. Only a only a few seconds later she heard a scream and knew either she or her clone managed to hit the Myoka. After the dust cleared up, Ayane witnessed a bleeding and huffing Ayko. The Myoka was looking at her with such fear and anger at the same time, it scared her and at the same time made her more confident about her skills.

She knew this was the start of a fight between skilled kunoichi, both determined to win, no matter what cost.

_Ayko's POV._

While she scanned the Morinaka heiress Ayko quickly performed the hand signs needed for her tsuchibunshun no jutsu. The bunshin came charging at high speed at her opponent. Ayko felt that she still had quiet alot of stamina left to finish the job. The way things were going right now, it wouldn't take too long. While her bunshin distracted the green-haired kunoichi with her Fireneedles-jutsu, Ayko slashed her way to her and hacked into the unexposed flesh of the Morinaka's upper leg. Blood poured out and the hiss Ayane uttered made it clear to Ayko she was able to land a clean hit on her. Ayko, who planned ahead for her next move, was too busy to hear the yelps and held breaths from the audience. As she moved her way in to cut her opponent again she was met with resistance from the girl before her.

'She managed to dodge it... I guess she wasn't that shaken up from our previous encounter.' Ayko realized as she suddenly witnessed her bunshin fall apart into mud. Ayane called her bluff when she threw that kunai and dispelled her bunshin.

'Fuck! She saw through it! Damn, she must've read my facial expression. Wait...? Is she surprised too?' Ayko huffed as she tried to read Ayane's face. The girl gave her a smirk, almost as if she believed the battle would end in her favour. Ayko's right brow started twitching in annoyance; if that's what the Morinaka chick thought then she didn't know who she was dealing with. Ayko narrowed her eyes on the other heiress and in reply she immediately performed her Fireneedles-jutsu aiming straight at her. Just when Ayko thought she had this one in the bag, the Morinaka heiress pulled another trick. From the ground a giant earthstone dragon rose to repell the impact of the needles. Everything after that happened very fast; first the green-haired girl dispelled the dragon-jutsu calling up dust from the arena and performing a tsuchibunshin at the same time. With the dust coming up she had created a curtain of fog leaving Ayko blinded from any upcoming attacks. A sudden rain of shuriken hit in on her without her being prepared for their impact. Her upper-arm, right cheek and lower left leg were cut deeply, but not fatal. As the dust-cloud settled Ayko was able to see the Morinaka heiress again and she felt really pissed off. She glared at her with both fear and fury. Ayko wouldn't hold back anymore, this match went from measuring each other up to a full-out battle. Their motivation had just hit the maximum level.

The black haired teen stood her ground; she swept some blood away that was trickling down her mouth. Her eyes darted back to the Morinaka immediately, her look never changing. Ayko had decided to make this match as pleasing as possible; she excitedly wished to use one of her latest perfected attacks. Since the other heiress had no way of knowing she was a skilled master of the kinton, this knowledge could decide the outcome of all this entirely. Ayko's infuriated face melted into a confident smug grin startling the green haired kunoichi for a moment.

"Hey! Ayane was it, right?" Ayko called out to her opponent, not afraid to bluff this time either. "I can tell you're strong by the way you battle me, but don't you think we've been playing around for a bit too long? If it was up to me I'd like you to go full-out on me; I know you're a genjutsu-user. So why don't you show me that technique of yours?" Ayko noticed how the Morinaka's expression changed from surprise to confusion. Not only did the Myoka's statement make no sense to her, but the entire crowd could clearly hear her provocation broadcasted over the stadium. What exactly was she trying to accomplish by doing that?

Somewhere in the higher rows of the stadium Mazuiko Myoka's look changed to utter devastation; her daughter had just provoked an opponent that had the upper hand. Kaito Noraishi laid his warm hand over his wives'. "Show some pride in her, Mazuiko-koichi! She's our daughter and by the way she's grinning I know she's got something up her sleeve. She's always been as cunning as you were." the sandy-blond stated smiling in trust of his youngest child. Mazuiko sighed in response, she didn't seem convinced one bit.

In the meanwhile the Morinaka heiress straightened her stance to better observe Ayko. Why did she even bother to say that out loud? 'She could've used this moment to land a surprise attack on me, but she didn't... Is she really that confident?' Ayane thought.


	4. Chapter 2-3

Chapter 2: The clan's pride at stake - Morinaka vs. Myoka.

_Ayane's POV._

"Hey! Ayane was it, right?" Ayko called out to her. "I can tell you're strong by the way you battle me, but don't you think we've been playing around for a bit too long? If it was up to me I'd like you to go full-out on me; I know you're a genjutsu-user. So why don't you show me that technique of yours?" Ayane got confused by her provocation. Even though she said it in front of the entire arena and she looked confident, it didn't make sense. 'She could've used this moment to land a surprise attack on me, but she didn't... Is she really that confident?' Ayane thought.

Ayane quickly tried to come up with a technique to crush the Myoka's confidence, but she wasn't planning on using her genjutsu yet. She now knew that's the jutsu she was waiting for and even if she's not familiar with it, she seemed confident enough to be able to dispel it. This only caused Ayane to feel her confidence drop to zero and her panic level to rise. Her genjutsu skills were the only thing she could win this match with and now she wasn't certain of it anymore.

She scanned through the arena rows to find her family. As she found her green haired relatives, she could see how they were all sitting at the tip of their chairs and waiting for her to come into action again. Her brothers were yelling supportive words through the entire arena and her parents gave her the reassuring looks she was hoping for.

When she faced Ayko, she felt confident again and didn't waste any more time on thinking of a jutsu to attack her with. Ayane immediately grabbed some shuriken and threw them at the Myoka. Ayko reflected them with her katana and waited for her to launch another attack. Since she provoked Ayane, she had a smirk on her face and it didn't look like Ayane would be able to wipe it off soon. For a moment Ayane felt how her confidence dropped again, but she couldn't let Ayko notice it. To keep her confidence up she dug into her memory to remember the moves and tactics which gave her the upper hand a while ago.

After recalling every step she had taken so far, she knew she didn't have much of a choice. She only had one option left to win this fight: using her clan jutsu as soon as possible. No matter how confident the Myoka looked, Ayane knew that her genjutsu would wipe away that smirk in no time. But coming at her with the genjutsu right away would be too predictable, so she needed a diversion and that's exactly where she came into action with. Rat - Snake - Tiger. As her fingers formed the signs, all Ayane could think about was: game on.

_Ayko's POV:_

It seemed, much too her dislike, that the Morinaka-girl hadn't completely given up yet. In fact the more Ayko observed her the more she noticed how the girl before had calmed down instead of giving in to her provocations. Ayko racked her brain to find out what was it that kept the green haired kunoichi so motivated. As if on cue she traced where her opponent was staring at in the audience; a family of 4 consisting of other green haired people. Probably her parents and brothers. Ayko smirked; she too had a family that was anxiously watching this match unfold and it made her laugh as she thought of her mother panicking at her former antics. She didn't let the other Heiress notice her momentarily distress of why the Morinaka didn't use her ultimate technique right away; maybe it had something to do with the needed amount of chakra. The Myoka Heiress herself knew that she struggled with the same thing most of the time, since a lot of her powerful jutsu's drained her to the bone. At this moment she upheld her poker face, slipping into an unconscious smirk from time to time, trying to gather the strategy that could counter the attack and then end the fight.

It appeared not to be as simple as she first had thought. Not to mention the Morinaka girl had a habit of being rather unpredictable at times, which put Ayko at a disadvantage at times. The Myoka Heiress dropped her guard for just a moment to find Ayane throwing a load of shuriken her way. Luckily, as if on instinct, she managed to draw Kyuushuu barely in time to deflect all of them. After Ayko's provocation still fleeted in the air it seemed the entire situation had become tense and hesitant. Ayane took her time to search her opponent, not showing signs of attacking right away. It made the black haired teen raise her eyebrow in both relieve as well as surprise, what was this girl up to? Ayko sighed inwardly hoping to get an idea of what was going on in the other girls head. Would she attack or not, or... Was this all a scheme to throw her off? The Myoka became impatient as time passed by as always, she had to restrain herself from making any impulsive moves like she usually would. That proved to hand over the upper hand to her opponent before so she wouldn't let it happen at any cost.

Suddenly Ayane started off by making hand signs that the Myoka Heiress wasn't familiar with. 'Could it be that she's using her genjutsu?' Ayko smiled a little preparing for the next impact. But then much to everyone's surprise the Morinaka yelled out something else. "Doton: earth flow wave!" the green haired girl screamed throughout the arena. Ayko's eyes grew wide; she had anticipated this girl the wrong way. Could she have been buying time for the big attack? A huge wave of dirt and rocks shot out from the ground leaving Ayane latterly on top.

'Che, she's stealing my spotlights, huh? Well, no worries. I'm prepared.' The black haired teen gritted a little annoyed by the sudden change of atmosphere. Another load of shuriken and kunai flew in the Myoka's direction, which led to her deflecting them once again. It was then at the same time that the Morinaka cancelled her jutsu creating another dust cloud to leave her adversary blinded once again.

"Well, what do ya know? You're actually using this trick again and here I thought I had a big shot coming!" Ayko grinned mocking her hidden opponent.

_Ayane's POV:_

Ayane could see Ayko was obviously surprised by her attack. As she waved the signs and yelled out the jutsu's name, a huge earth wave shot out of the ground. Standing on top of it, Ayane had a clear view on where Ayko was standing and prepared herself for her next attack. While grabbing some shuriken and kunai, she sent the wave towards Ayko and threw her weapons. Of course the Myoka deflected them with her katana again, but she never could've expected the next thing that happened.

As Ayko deflected the kunai and shuriken, Ayane cancelled her jutsu and created a huge cloud of dust. Like she expected, the Myoka was thinking she was using the same trick again and made it very clear by yelling it through the entire arena. 'Perfect, just perfect', Ayane thought before whispering "Earth Dust" with a smirk on her face.

Ayko had been standing there being her annoying, confident self and waited for her to launch her next attack, but that quickly changed. Ayane watched the Myoka turn into a panicking opponent as the genjutsu lasted. 'Looks like I've finally wiped off that smirk', she thought. 'You asked me to use my genjutsu, so here it is. Let's see how long you can withstand its effects.'

Even if this was the first time she actually used the clan jutsu in battle, she knew well enough what she could expect of it. When she graduated the academy, her dad started supervising her training and taught her everything about the genjutsu unique to their clan. One of the first things he explained was the different kind of illusions the genjutsu could create. Sight, touch, smell, hearing and taste. A genjutsu able to affect all five senses.

Controlling each sense would require a certain level of chakra control. Sight requires the lowest level, taste requires the highest. Genin's are only able to affect sight, jonin's are able to affect taste and everything in between. The user's skills in affecting a sense would also determine the effects. Every sense can be affected in 3 different ways, going from seeing extra opponents to seeing your worst nightmares.

When she started her training as Genin, Ayane was only able to affect her opponent's sight. But that quickly changed as she learned to control her chakra better and trained a lot. Before she knew it, she was at Chuunin level and able to affect not only sight, but also touch and smell. Mastering these senses meant she was ready to enter the Chuunin Exams and reap the benefits of her training by defeating her opponent. And that's exactly what was happening.

Ayane tried not to have any compassion with Ayko since she probably would use her most powerful technique on her too, but she did. She knew what kind of horrible things the girl was going through at the moment and felt guilty. As she looked through the crowd and recognized her dad's face, she remembered their last conversation this morning.

_Morinaka compound, 4 hours before the Finals._

"Do you remember that time I used that genjutsu on you while training?" her dad asked. "Of course I do. It was the most horrible experience of my life." Ayane replied. She instantly though back and felt how her body shivered remembering the event.

Her dad wanted her to know what the effect felt like and the only way to do that was by using the technique on her. At first she didn't feel anything. The more time passed, the more she felt like she was dying. Facing her worst nightmares was only the start, but not much later she felt like invisible weapons were fatally wounding her. And to make it even worse, she felt how her lungs were being eaten away by air filled with corrosive acid. No matter how much she tried to ignore it all, she couldn't escape the genjutsu. The moment she felt her last breath slipping through her throat, she collapsed.

As she woke up, her dad was sitting next to her. "This is what it feels like to get caught in our genjutsu? It's horrible." she said while sitting up. "It is indeed a horrible experience to get caught in it, but you have to remember to use it whenever you have the chance. It can save your life." he replied.

"You told me to use it whenever I have the chance. And that it can save my life." Ayane said. "But how am I supposed to use this in the Finals without feeling like a monster for putting someone through it, only to be promoted?" "Do you think your opponents will feel guilty when using their most powerful technique on you? They won't." her dad said, ignoring his daughter's feelings. "It's going to be a battle to life and death, so you have to use all you've got. Please remember that, Ayane." he continued before taking her hand and squeezing it. "I will."

Seeing her dad's face made her reminded her of promise she made him. After taking a deep breath she got herself to look at Ayko again. The black haired girl stood there, breathing heavily with her hands covering her eyes. At this point her sight wasn't affected that much anymore, but now her touch and smell were getting affected slowly. This only meant that Ayko would soon start to feel like she's suffocating and not long after that, she would scream out and collapse. Or, if she did happen to know a way to get out of the genjutsu - which wasn't the easiest way -, she would use her own unique clan jutsu to defeat Ayane and finally win the battle.

As Ayko suddenly took out her katana, Ayane just stared in disbelieve and knew it was over.

_Ayko's POV._

'What a waste of wor-' as soon as Ayko thought that she felt her sight become blurred and unstable. 'What the hell? What's going on?' When she was able to see clearly again she noticed she was surrounded by people she knew very well; the clan-elders, her parents and her brother. They all looked at her with criticizing looks and annoyance. The oldest clan-elder took the first word as the Myoka-heiress shivered in distress.

"Just look at her. Pathetic! And you think you deserve to represent our clan as our future leader? Such a disgrace!" "You're right, I can't believe I supported her. Ayko, you can't even overcome a genjutsu of this level. You're not worthy!" Mazuiko spoke as she stared emotionless at her daughter. Kaito just nodded in agreement to his wife's words, but remained silent.

"I've always hated you and your arrogance! Not only were you born with our clan's birthright, but you also misused your position to make yourself look better. I wish you had never been born! If you hadn't then maybe my life wouldn't have been such a hell. To think I should respect you when you can't even beat your opponent in a tournament like this... Downright disgraceful!" Kami screamed with eyes filled with anger. Ayko felt herself collapse under the weight of their words; on the brink of an emotional breakdown.

"No... I never meant for this happen. I worked so hard to get here! How can you all say that!" she screeched. "I can- I can't just lose here. There's too much at stake for me!" Suddenly they all disappeared from her sight; she rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing anything. But before she was able to adjust to the situation she got hit by sharp invisible objects piercing her skin at any possible place. At first it was bearable but the pain became too overwhelming for her to hold out any longer.

'At this rate I could die... What should I do? If only I had been paying more attention to what everyone has been telling me.' the black haired teen realized. She'd been so focused on her jutsu's she forgot to cover for her defenses. 'I've been such an idiot.' To her horror she concluded that the worst had yet to come. A large pressure building up in her chest; she urged her lungs to pull in air but all she felt was some kind of acid damaging her airways.

'It-it's too m-much... must resist pain.' and then the reflection of her katana hit her in the eyes. Without thinking she pulled out Kyuushuu and stabbed her right thigh in an instant. To her relieve she was able to breathe again and instead of utter defeat she could taste victory again. Ayko breathed heavily before she pulled herself together to face Ayane for the last time. The green haired girl looked shocked and there was a hint of respect in her eyes. The Myoka-heiress sighed in confusion, but she realized she had to finish things quickly before she would lose her will to fight. Hurriedly she performed the hand signs for the clan-jutsu she'd been working so hard on.

"Kinton: movement strain!" for the first time would she use her kinton technique in battle in front of such a huge audience. The Morinaka-girl blinked in wonder as she suddenly wasn't able to move freely anymore. She eyed her opponent in fear realizing what was going on. Ayko's hands moved like they were pulling invisible strings in the air and with each movement Ayane was forced to step in the black haired teen's direction.

"Is she a puppet master?" someone from the public asked in surprise.

'Hmm, I guess it does look that way' Ayko noted as she kept moving Ayane over to her. It's not like she wanted to embarrass her enemy, but at this point she was too injured to move herself. Plus Ayko had lost a part of her pride during her time in the genjutsu. 'The basics of this jutsu are the use of the iron in our bloodstream and as a kinton-user I have control over any kind of metal. I'm not strong enough to completely seal her movements right now, so this is the best I can manage. Just a little bit more-' Ayane was only a few feet away from her now, so Ayko boosted her legs with chakra as she moved forward charging her katana at the genjutsu-user. Right before landing her hit she stopped her blade at the green haired girl's throat.

"I won't kill you... That's not the way I do things." she whispered to the girl before her as she released her jutsu. Ayane fell down due to the pressure on her body suddenly being cancelled. She observed the Myoka girl closely before she nodded. "I enjoyed our fight; you did a great job there... It almost cost me everything. I hope we can meet again someday, Ayane."

The loud cheers broke free from the audience as the proctor from the Chuunin finals called out the winner of the match: "The victor is Ayko Myoka of the Myoka-clan!" Ayko straightened her stance as she eyed the public looking at her parents and older brother; they had proud-filled faces as they kept on cheering for her. Before she could turn around to meet her team she got tackled into a hug from Doitei.

"You were awesome, Ay-chan!" he yelled squeezing the air from her lungs. Kyo and Torii-sensei joined them at a slower pace, but obviously enthusiastic about her win. "You did give us a scare there, you know. For a second I thought you weren't going to break free from her attack. Apart from that: congrats with your victory!" Kyo smiled raising his thumb up. Ayko grinned pulling both of her teammates in an embrace.

"I have to thank you baka's for supporting me the entire time; I don't think I would've won without you cheering for me, so thanks!" "You're welcome." they both replied cheerfully. Torii coughed to announce his presence to the oblivious Myoka and managed to smile at her. "I have to say, despite my predictions you really were great out there. And to celebrate your win I'll treat all of you guys to barbeque! Before that, I hope you learned your lesson, Ayko, it's also important to tighten your defenses so you won't be open for attacks like this genjutsu. Maybe next time you won't be so lucky." Torii lectured his student yet again, but there was an undeniable proud smile on his lips.

"You know, sensei, for once I actually felt like I was being praised by you, but on second thought it just sounds like you're back to complaining again. And no, I haven't learned my lesson!" Ayko smirked sticking her tongue out again. "Come on guys, Torii-sensei did say he was treating us!" "HEY! You really didn't learn anything at all, did you?! " Torii nagged hurrying after his students.

On the other side of the stadium Ayane had joined her teammates and family in the audience. She traced the Myoka-heiress and her friends back in the arena also taking their seats. She would definitely remember this match and despite her loss today she felt like she hadn't lost at all. During the match she had given it her all and she felt proud that she was able to show everyone her abilities and will not to give up. So today she would leave with her head held high and a bright smile on her face.

"Thank you, Ayko, for having a great battle like this." she whispered, faintly smiling.


	5. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The other side of the border.

_Ayko's POV._

The excitement level in Konoha had dropped to zero lately. Every person, be it civilian or shinobi, seemed to have fallen in a slumber of daily boredom. Ayko in particular hated everything about this. She for one needed everyday distraction or she would simply lose patience and go on rampage. No one attempted to get near her at these times, except for Doitei and Kyo. That's why all three of them were strolling down Konoha streets; just to keep the Myoka Heiress preoccupied. Off course in only a matter of time did they pick up rumours of how Naruto's team had failed at confiscating the Sanbi. As the story told Akatsuki got away with the bijuu and Orochimaru's plans for creating another jinchuriki were stopped too. So the mission wasn't an entire failure. Ayko started sulking; while the other teams were having fun going on missions, she and the boys were condemned to absolute boredom. She, so caught up in her thoughts, bumped into a passer-by. While she prepared to blame it on the other party, she realised who she had run into.

"Oh hey guys!" Kiba yelled enthusiastically from Akamaru's back. Instead of being accompanied by Hinata and Shino as always, he had Lee and Naruto with him. The latter being the one Ayko clashed with just now. The horror spread to her face in a mere second, but before she could run in the other direction Naruto had already noticed her presence.

"Hey Ayko." He greeted with a hint of surprise. Ever since his 2.5 years absence they hadn't been able to properly talk. Ayko was either on missions or left right after seeing him. 'Well, not this time!' Naruto grinned inwardly. "Long time no see, huh?" Ayko shook her horrified look from her face and managed to smile awkwardly back at her rival.

"You don't say..." she commented in a hushed voice as her pleading glances towards Kyo and Doitei went by unnoticed. "So how have you been, Fishcake?" Naruto turned red in embarrassment as the other guys around him laughed their asses off at the black-haired teen's joke.

"Who would have thought you'd come up with a new nickname in 2.5 years!" Kiba remarked amused slapping Naruto's back. Ayko had used quiet a lot of names for Konoha's knucklehead. The variety being: Spikey, Blondie, Noodles and Whiskers. Fishcake just got ranked nr 1 in the popularity poll. "You should be glad being nicknamed by a girl." Naruto though, didn't see the humour in all of it.

"Well, it's still better than what Sai calls him." Lee replied defending Naruto. "Dickless is hardly a nickname anyone would want to carry around." Another burst of laughter exploded from the group of boys. Ayko couldn't help but laugh along with all of them; it felt like old times and she wouldn't deny that she missed it. She elbowed a still embarrassed Naruto and grinned at him.

"No harsh feelings, right?" she stated as she offered her hand. "By the way; welcome back!" Naruto scratched the back of his head in doubt before he decided to shake her hand anyway. Somehow he found it hard to believe that Ayko Myoka had changed during the time he'd been away, although it seemed she had. Sure she still messed around with him, but somehow this time it felt more playful rather than hurting. Did she acknowledge him after all?

Ayko felt relieved on the other hand, she had been nervous to meet with her childhood rival after so long. And the thought that he might have grown stronger nagged at the back of her mind, but she tried not to put too much thought into it. It was then that she noticed the difference in height between both of them.

"Hey Spikey, have you grown or something?" she remarked as she measured the difference with her arms. "Have you finally started eating vegetables and proper meals?" Naruto replied proudly towards her by stretching himself even more. "So, you noticed, huh?" he boasted overenthusiastically, enjoying every minute of attention. "I can't believe it!" Ayko growled, a little annoyed.

"You better-ttebayo!" he laughed in amusement. As the two of them continued their little show the other boys had started on the topic of their latest mission. "This happens, right? Not all missions are successfully finished and if we don't make mistakes how are we ever going to learn from them." Kyo spoke assuring to both Lee and Kiba who'd explained the situation earlier. "At least they didn't make that innocent boy a jinchuriki." Doitei nodded in agreement. "No matter what others might say; I think you guys did what was best. Akatsuki just took advantage of the situation to run off with the Sanbi, they never engaged into a real fight with you guys, so don't blame it on yourself. These guys just like fighting dirty." The white-haired teen smiled.

"Thank you, Kyo and Doitei! You two are such wonderful friends!" Lee yelled with tears running down his face of pure happiness. "Speaking of which, when is our team finally going to get a piece of action around here? I've been waiting so long already and nothing ever happens." Ayko shared her annoyance. "If I have to go to one more social event or formal party I'm going to bomb the Myoka Elders!"

"That bad, huh?" Kiba sympathized with her. "I can't wait to hear what my mom's got in store for me when I get back... I guess I better get a move on before she decides to make the list any longer. You guys, I'll be seeing ya later!" Kiba rode off on Akamaru's back towards his home waving back at everyone.

"YOSH! Gai-sensei is awaiting me for training, so I'll also be taking my leave. Until next time, my friends!" Lee bowed as he dashed of in the direction of the training fields. The remaining four shinobi stood there in silence debating what to do next.

"Hey, I better go too. Team 7 is meeting up for Ramen so I absolutely can't miss out on it! So let's get together sometime and hang out, okay?" Naruto realised as he said goodbye in a rush." And Ayko; just you watch and I'll beat you someday!" He grinned back at her as he broke into a spurt. "As if I'll let you!" she smirked. Kyo exchanged a snicker with Doitei before glancing Ayko knowingly. The Myoka Heiress caught on quickly though, and struck both boys with a death glare.

Team 6 eventually decided to have some Yankiniku at the local BBQ-shop and Ayko had invited Hinata over to join them. She had been on the same mission with the guys and Ayko wanted to catch up on things with her best friend. They hadn't seen each other in a long time. After waiting for 10 minutes Hinata came up to them breathing heavily.

"Hi minna-san!" she greeted before sitting next to Ayko. "Must've been one hell of training." Kyo wondered. "It's not as bad as you would think, though." The Hyuuga Heiress smiled politely. "Neji-niisan is taking good care of me, so I'm very grateful." "No breaks? Tough cousin you have there, girl!" Ayko grinned as she bumped shoulders with Hinata lightly. "How have you been? I heard about your recent mission from Kiba so I'm a bit curious." Hinata updated them about everything that went down and eventually hung her head because she felt a little useless thinking back at how Guren had neatly captured her within that special Chrystal.

"Sounds like everyone put in their weights for this one; pretty clever of you to figure out her Chrystal trick by encasing yourself with chakra. I for one wouldn't have been able to come up with that on the spot." Kyo credited Hinata.

"He's right, Hina-chan! You have superb chakra control that not even I can compete with. Be proud of yourself a little." Ayko pepped her up as she engulfed Hinata in a hug. "Thank you, Ay-chan, but still... It's not like Naruto-kun is going to notice me if I keep messing up. I need to get much stronger if I ever want to protect him." She whispered shyly. "I know you will, just you go out there and show him what you've got. Or maybe let's do it right now, I happen to know that team 7 is having dinner at Ichiraku's. Let's go, Hina!" "Ay-chan! No, please don't! What if he'll look at me weird after this. I don't think I'm ready to confront him!" poor Hinata panicked as she tried to stop her friend from storming to her doom.

"You guys, would you quit it for a sec; people are staring at us." Doitei confronted both girls about their antics. Kyo just shook his head in irritation. "It's always something with you two." Kyo muttered annoyed. "Just mention Naruto and suddenly you both get on edge. And what for really; he's a big airheaded moron!" "He is kinda funny though." Doitei added in amusement. "Let me remind you that Hinata needs to man up and tell him how she feels since said Moron refuses to notice what everyone else already knows. It's not my fault that he's thick-headed." Ayko argued back defensively. "Says his thick-headed rival." Kyo smirked clearly enjoying this.

"Why you little-!" The Myoka Heiress growled, but before she could finish her sentence she got cut off by someone unexpected. She got hit with a paper fan on the back of her head when she turned to face her attacker. "Kami-baka! What the hell was that for?" Ayko cursed her older brother as he greeted the others. "Just a little gift to calm your enthusiasm. Besides I'm here for business so listen up! You and Hinata were just summoned to meet with Hokage-sama. She told me not to tell you too much, but I think you'll be glad, Imotou-chan." The blond Jounin stated as he ruffled through his sister's hair. Ayko's face immediately lid up.

"No way, finally! Yes yes yes! Arigato Kami-nii! C'mon Hina, let's go!" She ushered her friend to follow. "Uhm Kami-san, what about me and Kyo?" Doitei informed curiously.

"Well, Hokage-sama only ordered me to fetch the girls, so I'm not really sure." The carefree jounin rubbed his nose absently. "That's okay, it's not like I wanted to go on a mission right now. I've still got a ways of training ahead and so do you, Doitei." Kyo shot the white-haired boy a stern look. "You girls go and steal the spotlight in our stead."

"You got it!" Ayko confidently raised a thumb on her way out. Kami left together with the two girls and just whistled a jolly tune as he seemed caught in a little daydream. Hinata slowed down to match his pace and looked right up to his face; he was rather tall after all. "H-hey, what's up?" Kami nearly stammered as a blush adorned his cheeks. "Nothing really; I just wondered how you were doing?" Hinata smiled innocently at him.

'How am I supposed to ignore her when's she's so cute like that?' Kami's inner self proclaimed with tears of defeat. "I'm fine, don't worry. Same old same old, you know. I'll be home for a while, just got back from a long-term mission so it should be for a longer period. So I'm really looking forward to spending some me-time." Kami calmly explained as he avoided looking her straight in the eyes. "By that you mean sleeping under the old apple-tree again?" Ayko joked after she had caught wind of what was going on behind her. Kami smacked his sister over the head with his fan again. "Ouch! Hey, can't you take a joke or what? Annoying Kami-baka!" "At least I'm using my spare time wisely, unlike others who need to bother their friends for entertainment." The blond stated sharply. Hinata just quietly drifted to the side-line as the brother-sister war continued. "But hey, you don't hear me throw accusations!"

"Shouldn't you be somewhere?" Ayko sneered back at him, irritation coating her words. "Now that you mention it... I had to be somewhere, but I completely forgot really." Kami muttered to himself staring blankly ahead. "Kami-san?" Hinata asked worriedly. "Oh for crying out loud! Just let the bastard be. We need to get going, Hina!" The Myoka Heiress growled, fed up with her brother's antics. They continued on a steady pace as they weren't that far from the Hokage's office. Hinata had a hard time keeping up with Ayko who was striding toward the building like her life depended on it. It still took a moment before either of them reached the hallway in which the office was located.

When they got to the door Ayko knocked it carefully; on the other side a firm 'Come on in' sounded. When both girls walked in they were looking right at Sakura, Tsunade and Shizune. "Ayko and Hinata, thank you for coming on such short notice. Please have some tea, it's Jasmine." Tsunade offered kindly. Both girls got themselves a cup and nodded thankfully. We're still waiting for the others to arrive, but I'm sure they'll be here shortly." "Sakura-san." Hinata greeted kindly. "Shizune-san." Ayko wasn't in a polite mood as Hinata; in fact she could barely hold her bearings. She prayed the others would join them real quickly and lucky for her the next knock on the door saved her the trouble of waiting.

"Come in." Tsunade replied. The door opened revealing none other than Kiba and a girl with green locks and beautiful grey eyes. Ayko's eyes grew wide in surprise; she was the girl from shop. But she felt the same familiar feeling of knowing her as when she bumped into her in that store. And then it hit her; this very same girl was her opponent in the Chuunin Finals.

"And with Ayane and Kiba that makes us complete. Please have yourselves some tea. I believe you've all been informed on what happened on the last mission concerning Orochimaru. What I want from you all is to track down Akatsuki. We presumed they had run off to their hide-out, but apparently they stayed in the vicinity for some reason. The Sanbi was of course not spotted along with them. A very reliable source shared us the knowledge that they had been moving along the Water country's border that borders our Fire country. I know we're not on friendly terms with the Water country, but I see no reason not to let you travel along our side of the border. Of course you will have to cross if you want to gather more intel, so be careful and maintain some sort of disguise. Once you're found out... let's just say I'd rather not like to think about that. Since Ayko here is the only Jounin on the team I'm appointing her as team captain. That means everyone needs to obey her command. Does anyone have any further que-?" Tsunade abruptly stopped talking and stood up from her desk to head straight to the door. Everyone else just observed her behaviour.

When Tsunade opened the door without warning an orange blur fell into the office growling in pain. "Glad you could join us, Naruto, but unfortunately you can't listen in on other people's missions. So forget what you've heard here and go home." Tsunade sternly glared at the blonds' face of pleading.

"But Baachan! It's Akatsuki we're talking about, why am I not on this mission? Is this because of the last one?" Naruto begged with all his might. Sakura was clearly not able to hold in her own irritation anymore and stormed over to where Naruto was. "Naruto-baka! What part of waiting outside didn't you get?!" she smacked him on the head with her fist leaving Naruto with a lump on his head. "I'm so sorry, Tsunade-Shisho. Naruto, apologize!" Sakura bowed to her teacher and forced Naruto to bow his head too. Tsunade sighed in absolute defeat.

"Shizune! Bring me a bottle of sake. No wait, make that two and pronto!" The Hokage ordered her assistant to leave as she held her head for support. Then she focused on Naruto and spoke in a low voice. "I suppose you wouldn't leave even if I forced you, right?" The blond just nodded in silence and did his best effort of producing his cutest puppy-eyes look. "All right then, everyone! Naruto will be a part of your team as of now. You will leave in the morning. Oh and one thing; I'd like you to keep me updated on the situation, so please report in regularly if possible. That's all, Team Ayko. May everything go smoothly."

_Ayane's POV._

"There you go." Ayane said, while looking at the giant panda's chewing on a piece of bamboo soaked in honey. They always looked happy and cute because of the black pattern on their faces, but Ayane knew they enjoyed their meal very much. The panda's had always been part of their family and lived in the garden surrounding the compound, so Ayane just knew when they were happy. She felt it.

It all started when her parents found 3 baby panda's on a business trip and raised them at home. The baby panda's grew up and before they knew it, more baby panda's became part of the family. The bond between the Morinaka's and their panda's was so strong and unique that their clan became known for keeping panda's. Her father's ANBU mask even looked like one.

A day with the panda's consisted of: feeding them, looking after the little ones, checking if the old ones are still okay, playing with them and cleaning up their mess. Day in, day out. But Ayane and the boys didn't matter. Even if they had to do it all in their free time.

And free time was all Ayane had on her hands today. No mission, no training, nothing. So spending time with the panda's was the only thing on her 'to-do-list'. As they kept on chewing on the honey bamboo, Ayane checked all the ponds to see if the fish were still in there and also checked the amount of bamboo in the garden.

Being the main resource of nutrients for a panda, bamboo has to be present in the gardens at any time. And it has to be present in a huge amount, since the panda's eat 10 kilos of it a day. At least 10 kilos. Luckily, bamboo grows fast. Very fast. So their only concern is to check if the plants are still in a healthy condition to grow. Checking them, Ayane found a few plants being in a poor shape, so next on her 'to-do-list' was fertilizing the plants.

As she walked to the storage at the back of the garden, she heard someone calling out her name. Turning around, she saw Ino and Tenten standing at the fence and waving at her. "I'll be right there!" she yelled while waving back at them. Walking into the storage she looked for a bag of fertilizer, but she couldn't find any. "Guess I'll have to go buy some in the village first." she said with a sigh.

"Hi girls, back from your mission? How did it go?" Ayane asked as she walked up to Ino and Tenten. "Ehm, not good actually. Akatsuki got away with the Sanbi, but we were able to save a little boy who was supposed to become its jinchuriki." Tenten said with a grim face. "I completely ruined everything by losing my focus while maintaining the sealing barrier." Ino said sadly. "I'm sure you tried your hardest. And don't forget that it's the Akatsuki you were up to." Ayane replied. "We tried, but failed." Ino answered and shook her head.

"You seem to have a nice quiet day though." Tenten said, trying to cheer things up a bit. "Yeah, I'm taking care of the panda's and the bamboo plants, but it seems I have to go get some fertilizer." Ayane replied, looking at the panda's. "Some plants aren't doing well, so I have to get them healthy again or the panda's won't have any food left." she continued. "You want to join me in a trip back to the village?"

As the girls arrived in the village, Ayane entered her mom's grocery store and walked up to the counter. "Hi mom, I'm here to get some fertilizer. Some of the bamboo plants need a little boost." she called out to the back room and waited for a response. No response was given, but instead a green flash rushed out of the back room and walked straight past her. Ayane watched her mom walking through the store with a container filled with red newts.

"Mom? Can I help you with something?" Ayane asked her. "One moment, I just have to put these newts in the aquarium and then I'll get you some bags." Hikari replied to her daughter while picking up some newts from the container. "I could get them myself too, no need to rush things." Ayane said, walking into the back room and into the storage room. "I'm taking 2 bags with me, which should be enough."

While dragging them into the store, she checked out the new addition to her mom's store. "An aquarium. Nice." she said, being impressed by how many newts it had room for. "Yeah, it came in this morning. Because of that I didn't put any water in the newt's container, which wasn't such a good idea." her mom replied shaking her head a little. "That's why you came rushing by without answering." Ayane said while picking up the bags again. "I'll be heading back home now, good luck with the new goods."

"I'll be leaving you if you don't mind. Fertilizing plants isn't interesting at all, so I don't want to fill your free time with boring activities." she said, looking at Ino and Tenten. "No problem, we'll see you around! Have fun with the panda's!" Ino replied before waving at Ayane and continuing her little chat with Tenten as they walked into the village.

Arriving at the compound, Ayane immediately started fertilizing the plants and had her hands full for a few hours. While taking a little break, she paddled in the pond to cool off a bit and watched the panda's nibbling on some bamboo. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. Ayane stood up and walked towards the front door. Opening it, she saw Shikamaru standing in front of it. "Hi Shikamaru, didn't expect to see you here. Can I help you?" she asked him, not expecting anyone to show up except for her mom or dad. "Yeah, you're being summoned to the Hokage's office." he replied, obviously annoyed. "Okay, but I'll have to pick up the boys from the Academy first, if that's okay." she said, looking at the clock. "No problem." Shikamaru answered and looked towards the forest beside the compound. "I'll be going then, need to check on the deer. So troublesome." he sighed, before continuing his way.

Ayane finished her tasks and after checking on the panda's one last time, she returned to the village to pick up the boys from the Academy. Usually her mom picked them up after she closed the store, but since she had day off, she said she would pick them up instead. As she got to the Academy, she saw her brothers standing by the swing, waiting for her. It seemed they had a great day, judging from their grins. "Looks like you had a great day. Tell me." Ayane asked her little brothers.

"Yeah, we learned about the Hokage's!" Wakaba answered. "I'm going to be the next! I'll do anything I can to get my face carved into the Hokage Monument!" Wakaki shouted. "Anything?" Ayane replied, looking at him. "Of course! Anything!" he said and looked up to the Monument. "Good, because I have a little task for the two of you: cleaning up the panda's mess. I need to go to the Hokage's office, so I won't have time to do it today." she said with a straight face. "No problem, Wakaki and Wakaba Morinaka at your service, madam!" her brothers replied in sync as they started to head home.

Home again, she made sure the boys had something to eat and got dressed to head to the Hokage's office. As she got there, she saw Kiba walking towards it too. "Kiba! Hi. You got summoned too?" she yelled, waving at him. "Oi, Ayane. You too? I wonder what it'll be about." he answered with a grin on his face. As they arrived at the office, Kiba knocked on the door. "Come in." was the expected reply and Kiba opened the door. Ayane walked in and noticed they weren't the only ones being summoned. Hinata was present, and so was the girl from the Chuunin Exams, Ayko Myoka. And of course, Sakura and Shizune.

"And with Ayane and Kiba that makes us complete." Tsunade said. "Please have yourselves some tea. I believe you've all been informed on what happened on the last mission concerning Orochimaru. What I want from you all is to track down Akatsuki. We presumed they had run off to their hide-out, but apparently they stayed in the vicinity for some reason. The Sanbi was of course not spotted along with them. A very reliable source shared us the knowledge that they had been moving along the Water country's border that borders our Fire country. I know we're not on friendly terms with the Water country, but I see no reason not to let you travel along our side of the border. Of course you will have to cross if you want to gather more intel, so be careful and maintain some sort of disguise. Once you're found out... let's just say I'd rather not like to think about that. Since Ayko here is the only Jounin on the team I'm appointing her as team captain. That means everyone needs to obey her command. Does anyone have any further que-?" Tsunade abruptly stopped talking and stood up from her desk to head straight to the door. Everyone else just observed her behaviour.

When Tsunade opened the door without warning an orange blur fell into the office growling in pain. "Glad you could join us, Naruto, but unfortunately you can't listen in on other people's missions. So forget what you've heard here and go home." Tsunade sternly glared at the blonds' face of pleading.

"But Baachan! It's Akatsuki we're talking about, why am I not on this mission? Is this because of the last one?" Naruto begged with all his might. Sakura was clearly not able to hold in her own irritation anymore and stormed over to where Naruto was. "Naruto-baka! What part of waiting outside didn't you get?!" she smacked him on the head with her fist leaving Naruto with a lump on his head. "I'm so sorry, Tsunade-Shisho. Naruto, apologize!" Sakura bowed to her teacher and forced Naruto to bow his head too. Tsunade sighed in absolute defeat.

"Shizune! Bring me a bottle of sake. No wait, make that two and pronto!" The Hokage ordered her assistant to leave as she held her head for support. Then she focused on Naruto and spoke in a low voice. "I suppose you wouldn't leave even if I forced you, right?" The blond just nodded in silence and did his best effort of producing his cutest puppy-eyes look. "All right then, everyone! Naruto will be a part of your team as of now. You will leave in the morning. Oh and one thing; I'd like you to keep me updated on the situation, so please report in regularly if possible. That's all, Team Ayko. May everything go smoothly."

As Team Ayko left the Hokage's office, Ayko immediately took on her task as captain. "You heard it loud and clear. My will is law. Understood?" she said, waiting to see everyone one nod their heads. "Okay, I'll see you all in the morning. Don't be late or I'm leaving without you. Understood?". Like everyone else, Ayane nodded again and waited for another command. "You're all dismissed." her captain concluded before they all returned homewards.

"Nice captain eh?" Kiba said with a grim face as he and Ayane walked home together. "Wonder how things will go when she keeps barking commands like that." "She's a jounin and in charge of our team. We have to do as she tells us to do. Not that I like the way she talks, but she's a very skilled kunoichi and I'm sure we'll succeed when we just obey her orders." Ayane replied, remembering her Chuunin Exam final match. "She's not that bad. Once she knows your abilities, she'll loosen up." "I hope so." Kiba replied. "So we'll be up against the Akatsuki again... Hopefully we'll succeed this time." "We only have to spy on them, so if we do it the right way there won't be any confrontation." Ayane explained. "But it's going to be a challenge anyway."

As they all grouped together at the front gate next morning, Ayko checked to see if the whole team was present. "Hinata, Kiba, Ayane, N-". In just a second, their captain's face turned from content to angry. "And of course that baka is late as always. If he's not here in 10 seconds I'm leaving without him. Stupid baka." Ayko growled, gritting her teeth. She hoped he would've learned to arrive on time after his trip with one of the Legendary Sanin, but apparently he didn't. "10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, -" Ayko counted down the seconds as suddenly Naruto walked past them and went ahead of them. "Oi, I'm here now. Let's move everyone!" he called out to his team mates, not noticing Ayko's mood turning from angry to furious...


End file.
